TL;DR Is an app (specifically Lingodeer) good enough to keep me engaged until I’m ready to take on more serious forms of study?
Also is Lingodeer a good enough to do decent learning in the language?
I started learning Japanese over a year ago. I used Duolingo for hirigana and katakana and then started learning vocab with an Anki 2k/6k deck. I still remember most of my hirigana/katakana and a handful of words when I hear them. I even picked up RTK and the Genki workbook and textbook during my study time but never got to the point of using them.
I was going strong for about 150-200 days I think but ended up burning myself out and demotivating myself.
My issue was not properly learning the vocab words once intricate kanji was introduced. It made it so there were many words that looked that same and had very similar kanji as well as a handful of words with similar meanings… everything was getting mixed up in my head and even words I did know eventually got mixed in with the mess.
I got to a point where I had my daily card limit of 200 maxed out and it would take me hours to get through it. I was at the point of mental exhaustion with Anki and learning the Japanese language in general. Once I realized where I was I decided to stop and give myself a break.
It’s been about 5 months now and though the nightmares of what happened still makes me doubt getting back into it, I don’t want to give up just yet. I personally don’t think I’m ready for such a big task such as RTK though. (I think for me personally it would be easier and make more sense if I learned RTK before jumping into Anki or Genki or something, but that’s besides the point.)
But I do want to eventually get back into learning the language before I forget everything and lose the small spark of motivation I still have.
I was thinking of getting into Lingodeer as I’ve heard better things about it than Duolingo, and since it’s an app where practice can be done anywhere and doesn’t require specifically scheduled study time, it would be a good way for me to keep engaged with the language until I’m ready to study again. It seems like a good “non-intimidating” way to stay in touch rather than trying to take on a textbooks worth of information right away…
I just want to know if this could be a viable way for me to get my jumpstart back into the language and possibly reignite my dive to really start studying. Or if there are better “non-intimidating” resources to get into the language, like apps or games, please let me know.
(Also if anyone has experience with Lingodeer, I would like to know if it is actually a good service and how for it’s material can actually take the user.)
3 comments
Have you tried immersion based learning? If you get burned out on studying then that seems to be the better option.
Don’t know about lingodeer but don’t use bunpo. It’s a scam.
TL;DR Good for learning grammar if you have a busy schedule but should be supplemented with additional forms of study (possibly at a later date). App also doesn’t have ‘backlog’ of things to revise so less pressure
I work full time and have a pretty hectic schedule, but I normally manage to use LingoDeer for about 15 minutes a day. As you mentioned, the convenience of being able to do it anytime/anywhere makes it a lot easier. Lessons are generally split up into 5 minute segments that you can easily drop in-and-out of. There are also regular (but optional) tests to check you have understood the previous lessons so you can find areas to revisit
I find it great for learning Grammar, as well as for writing and listening practice. I didn’t find it great for increasing vocabulary myself because I wasn’t a fan of the ‘review vocabulary’ mode. The Kanji also isn’t covered in a great way, it’s just presented with the word without a particular reasoning for what each individual kanji means in a compound word.
One somewhat significant drawback (as with most apps) is that you get good at the app, not at the language skills behind it. As such, I found it was a good supplement to text book study at a later date. As I was reading the textbook, I’d often recognise it from Lingodeer which would make it easier to remember as it would be in both my long and short term memory.
Lingodeer can be a bit costly if paid for monthly, but I got a lifetime subscription while it was on offer for about £100gbp.
For context, I’ve been studying for just over a year, averaging 30 mins studying a day while also working full time. I also recently started using a tutor twice a month for 1 hour each time. I’m semi-confident I will pass N4 this July.
Hope this helps! 頑張ってください！